If You're The Party, I'll be Your Poison
by Samara Serelle
Summary: Korra was corrected at the beginning of the war. After years of functioning to the standards of BL/ind a mysterious turn of events sends her into the desert and into the lives of the Fabulous Killjoys and their mission to take down BL/ind. Killjoyverse
1. Intro

Intro

I'd always loved the fall. I looked forward to school starting and the leaves changing from the bright green of summer to the oranges and reds. I loved the crisp mornings and the perfect weather. Never too hot or too cold. I loved the hooded sweatshirts and jeans instead of shorts and bikini tops. Mostly I loved being with my family. The work hours slowed because of school and my brother spent most of his time at home in the family garage tinkering with his beat up used car. But that was the past. Now it was always hot and sticky. There weren't leaves or hoodies or cold crisp mornings. There was nothing.

I felt nothing mostly. Just blank buzzing. What I did feel I felt only because that's what the pills wanted me to feel. I could barely remember what snow felt like or what fun was. My mind had been numbed. I felt no connection to my family. We just lived together in our Industry approved house. My brother worked long hours in the desert outside of Battery City and my mother kept to her bed filled with pain medication to keep her stable as she slowly died. But I didn't really care. I just moved around like the puppet Better Living Industries made me.

My childhood was a distant memory. The war and the fires just a fuzzy thought pushed to the back of my mind. I wasn't allowed to talk about my father. His Extermination poster remained a constant reminder of what was banned in the city. I knew little to nothing about him and the BLI made sure to keep it that way. And then my memories began flooding back.

At first they were just flashes in my dreams. I'd see my mother laughing as my brother and I ran through sprinklers. I could feel the cold droplets on my face and then it would disappear. I'd feel the summer sun on my ten-year-old cheeks and see my father smiling as he helped me fly a kite. I remembered what happiness felt like, if only for a split second.

I had to hide these fleeting feelings. It was against BLI code to experience emotions outside of what was provided by the pills. If there was any notice of emotion there was no telling what the Dracs would do to us. So I kept my mouth shut. The fear of being exterminated fueled everyone in Battery City. The Dracs led by example. Perform to standards or be exterminated, nothing more, nothing less.

My place before my mother's sickness had been with the mechanics. I'd always been a tinkerer. My hands refused to be idle so they had me build machines for the Scarecrow Unit. Everything from computers to fixing vehicles, I had to know how to work it all. When my mother took ill they reassigned me to nurse. So I preformed my duties with new medications. Clean, cook, keep everyone comfortable and don't ask questions became my new lease on life and I performed to the best of my abilities. I was a drone.

But then the dreams became longer, more intense. The memories distracted my performance and my brother took notice. He questioned me but I kept quiet. I couldn't risk being thrown to the Dracs, or worse, Korse. I couldn't risk being killed but I couldn't run away. So instead of sleeping, I kept myself as busy as possible. I cleaned; I took things apart and put them back together. I even took double dosage of my medications. But the human mind can't stay awake forever and eventually I slept. It was on one of those nights that my medicated world flipped upside down.

* * *

><p>Today was Reading Festival and though I couldn't go, I watched it on a livestream and it blew my mind. My Chem was fantastic and my love for the band is stronger than ever. It's being siad that with this performance the Killjoy Era is ending so I figured, why not post this story that I've started in honor of that. I've been thinking about this story for a long time and it's about time I've put it to words. I don't know a whole lot about Killjoy-verse so I'll do my best to stay close to what Gerard and the band created but this is also my story so cut me some slack.<p>

Thanks for reading!


	2. One

**One**

"Korra! Wake up!" My brother's voice sounded frantic and he looked even worse when I opened my eyes to see him leaning over me, his entire body coated in sweat. He hadn't been wearing a shirt and his dark hair was stringy and in his face. His blue eyes were wide and bloodshot and he looked terrified.

"What's going on?"

"Get dressed, we have to go." Was the only explanation he offered me before he disappeared from my bedroom, my white, colorless bedroom.

After I got dressed Daniel dragged me outside into the night and shoved me into our only car. He tossed a pack into the back seat and tore away from the curb, heading straight toward the main highway, Route Guano. He drove silently for over an hour before even looking at me. I just kept my hands in my lap and my eyes on the road. I knew not to question him. The women of the city were only meant to breed and perform their assigned duties, no questions asked. But something was different about Daniel and I wanted to know why.

"Korra, I know you're not medicated," were his first words to me and I froze. Of course I was medicated.

"I don't know what you mean." I kept my eyes on my hands but he kept talking.

"No, you're not. Not as heavily at least. I've been weaning you off them."

"I'm sorry?"

"There's so much you need to know and there's not enough time to explain." He reached across to me and cupped my chin. I couldn't pretend I didn't want to know anymore so I looked him straight in the eyes. They were alive and energetic not like they'd been before. His cheeks were flushed and he had a sheen of sweat on his forehead. He looked so alive, so free.

"You—you're not…" I couldn't even string a sentence together but he nodded regardless.

"No, haven't been for almost a year now. It's time you unlocked the hold on you too. You're old enough now to fight."

"Fight? Fight what?"

"Fight back. Agaisnt BLI."

I didn't even want to fathom what he meant by that. Surely not what I thought. Because joining the fight only lead to starvation or death. "What about Mom? Where is she? What's going on?" My questions flew before I could check myself but he didn't seem to mind. In fact, he smiled.

"Our mother is dying, Korra. There's nothing we can do to save her. She's probably already dead. Don't fear your curiosity. You'll remember soon."

"Remember?"

"How you used to be."

The confusion tied my tongue and I knew he knew it. He patted my knee and focused back on the long stretch of highway before us. I closed my eyes and tried to make head or tail of what Daniel told me but nothing made sense. How was I not medicated? I could still feel the haze on my mind. The urges to run back to my white bedroom and curl into my black covers were almost irresistible. But then again, there was another part of my mind coming free, a pushy side I never felt. It wanted to know more. It wanted me to ask questions and state my opinion. It wanted me to be bold and adventurous and break something. It wanted to be free.

"You remember, don't you? That's why you don't sleep," Daniel muttered suddenly and I opened my eyes. "You remember our childhood before the war. The peace and the fun we used to have. You remember our father."

The drugged side of me told me to keep my mouth shut and deny it, but this newer, freer side opened my mouth and admitted it. "I don't remember a lot, but yes, I remember being… happy."

Daniel looked at me and the corners of his lips turned up. He was smiling, a real, genuine smile that lit up his eyes. "Good. I'm proud of you. You're learning quickly."

"Learning what?"

"Yourself. Your true self, not the corrected drone they turned you into. You're becoming the Reaper you were born to be."

"The what?"

But he didn't have a chance to explain because something took out our tires and sent us spinning into oblivion. The car jerked and we skidded off the road into the sand and rubble. My side of the car slammed into a massive rock, forcing my head to whack against the window. Glass shattered and the airbag deployed and there was nothing but chaos. I heard Daniel mutter something about Dracs and he pushed something into my hand but my vision faded. All I heard was a strangled war cry and then my world went blank.

* * *

><p>When I woke up I was still squished in the twisted metal of our car. Every inch of my body pounded with pain but I could hear people shuffling around in the sand around the car. After a lot of wriggling and groaning I managed to get my body free and crawled across to the open driver side door. I fell face first into the sand but I couldn't stop there. No matter how much pain I was in or how bloody my arms and face were, I forced myself to stand and held up the object Daniel had slipped me. It was a ray gun, a black painted gun that had been issued by the BLI. I could see where the smiley face logo had been painted over. Instead of the face there was a perfect white circle in what rested a red scythe. A white and red stripe adorned the side of the gun and the trigger was painted a dark gray. Without even thinking about it I knew that this was my gun.<p>

Shuffling behind the car distracted me so I crouched and shuffled around toward the trunk where the noise was loudest. A flickering fire was burning around which a handful of Dracs lay sprawled. Scorch marks were everywhere and beside the fire lay my older brother, his head propped against a rock and his hands, shaking and coated in blood, where clutching at his abdomen.

"Daniel!" I rushed to him but he was already drifting. The wound in his stomach was severe and not even my skill as a nurse could save him. He looked right at me with those soul searching blue eyes and smiled.

"Remember who you are, Rev. You've got too."

"Rev?"

"Just remember," he stammered and coughed, a trickle of blood dribbling from the corner of his mouth.

"Daniel, don't." I ripped one of my sleeves from my dress and pressed it to the wound as hard as I could but he pushed me away.

"It's too late, Korra. Everything you need is in the pack. You'll understand. This had to happen."

"NO!"

He coughed again, this time with more blood bubbling from his throat and he laid his head back and closed his eyes. I tried everything to revive him but nothing worked. For the first time I felt grief in full force. No grief pills to cloud the pain. Tears soaked my cheeks and I curled up beside my big brother, hugging him as his body went still and the life I'd seen in his eyes just hours before left them blank and staring. I didn't think pain and suffering would be my first resounding emotions upon freedom of correction but it helped me learn what love really felt like. It wasn't a fabricated obligation; it was an affection that I couldn't even explain.

When the life left those blue eyes my chest seized up and I crumpled beside him. I didn't care about the sand in uncomfortable places or the blood caking to my skin. I just cried. I lost track of time as I mourned and I knew in the back of my mind that something was bound to happen if I didn't run. It took all my strength to stand up and gather the pack from the car. Wiping tears from my face I took what was left of the fire and set it to my brother's body. It hurt even more to smell his burning flesh but I had to get rid of it before the Dracs caught up. So I burned everything, even the car. It took a while for the fire to hit the gas tank so I was a long stretch away when it finally exploded, but I knew that the blast would attract someone. This desert wasn't empty. There were Killjoys constantly looking for any sign of movement from the City. And I'd just fed them something. If joining the fight was what my brother wanted me to do, then I would. I would fight for him.

When I curled up in the little sleeping bag Daniel had stuffed in the pack I vowed on his fiery grave: I was going to avenge my brother and my family if it was the last thing I did. And the only way to do that was by taking down the BLI.

* * *

><p>Since I haven't gotten very far with this chapters will be short. I just wanted to post a couple just to get things rolling.<p>

Thanks for reading!


	3. Two

**Two**

I'd only gotten a few hours of sleep when I heard muffled footsteps through my makeshift camp. Being the light sleeper that I am I shot up out of my sleeping bag and crashed into someone, sending us both toppling onto the ground. We landed in a tangle of limbs in the sand and my mystery guest hit the ground with an "Oomf." I wriggled away from him as fast as I could and yanked out my ray gun but some else grabbed me from behind, sending my gun flying.

"Get off of me!" I tried to get free but his grip was iron clad.

"Not tonight, babe."

A flashlight clicked on and whoever was holding it shined it straight in my face. "You're from the city." It wasn't a question and I knew immediately that my visitors were Killjoys. A flash of color between my bursts of flashlight blindness confirmed that but I didn't let myself relax.

"What's it to you?"

"Were you involved in the wreck a few miles back?" Another voice broke through the darkness. I couldn't tell how many there were because of the kid shining the flashlight in my face but I knew there was definitely more than two.

"I might have been," I hedged just to test my boundaries. This new daring part of me had taken hold and I couldn't shut her up no matter how much I wanted.

"By the looks of your arms and face I'd say you were," the one holding the flashlight said and there were mutterings that I couldn't catch. I definitely heard someone mention that I was a woman and could be useful and that sent my already unstable mind into a rebellious frenzy. The man holding me tightened his grip on my arms when I started to try and wriggle free again. His grip became so tight I thought he might snap my arm.

"What are you doing out in the middle of the desert? If Dracs had gotten to you first there'd be no hope."

"How about you let me go and I'll be nice," I spat at the speaker and he chuckled.

"Right, like you're not some City spy trying to flesh us out. I'm not falling for that."

"Hey, Poison, she had this," another man with a flashlight marched up to what I assumed was their leader and handed him my gun. He turned it in his hands before sticking it in the back of his jeans.

"Where'd you get the gun?"

"Why should I tell you anything? You're not being very hospitable."

"Kobra, let her go," the one called Poison instructed and the iron grip dropped my arms. The blood rushed back into my limbs making them numb to my elbows and I glared up at them. Turns out, there were four of them surrounding me. I took my time waiting for the feeling to return to my hands and gathered my thoughts.

"My brother and I left the city tonight, yes. Why? I have no idea. Dracs caught up to us and ran our car off the road. They killed him and I blew it up to attract some kind of attention. I might have lived in the city for a long time, but I'm not stupid. Destruction attracts you guys like moths and I figured if I can't go back to the City I might as well make some friends out here. I don't know where we were going or why I just know he didn't want me going back."

The four men shifted around me and they leaned toward each other and began whispering. It was kind of pointless considering I'd been sitting in between them and could hear their entire conversation. Two of them wanted to leave me for the Dracs while the other two wanted to know how I ended up with my gun. Something about Reapers being long gone and my ears perked at the mention of the name Daniel had called me before he died. After a few more hushed arguments they finally made a decision and their circle loosened around me and Poison spoke up.

"You know how to cook, right?" he asked and I laughed.

"Yes."

"And you clean, too?" another one asked.

"Will I be your maid? No." I snapped at him but Poison stepped forward.

"What we're asking is if you'd be willing to help us out if we take you back to base. I guess, instead of paying us money you just… give base a woman's touch."

The offer wasn't horrible and I needed somewhere to sleep without fearing extermination in the open desert so I pushed myself to my feet and shrugged. "Very well. I'll help you out if you help me out."

"Shiny," he watched me dust myself off before they tossed my pack at me and ushered me toward their vehicle, a heavily painted and decorated Trans Am that stood out even in the darkness. The flashlight lit up the hood of the car where a huge black spider was emblazoned on it. They squished me into the car and one of them tossed a bandana at me.

"For the trip to base. Until we know we can trust you, you should put that over your eyes."

"Fine." I pulled the thing over my face and tied it tightly behind my head. One of them waved his hand, the subtle shadow passing where I could see my hands if I looked at my lap.

"Can you see anything?" One of them asked.

"Just my lap. No worries."

"Good. Let's roll."

Without a second thought the engine roared to life and we sped off toward whatever base these four Killjoys called home.

* * *

><p>The ride was quiet and quick back to their base and I could tell they didn't want to talk to each other with me around. It didn't faze me much since I didn't trust them either so instead we sat in silence listening to the static broadcast of the notorious pirate radio host Dr. Deathdefying. I listened closely to every word on the station from the banned music to his cryptic messages to the killjoys in the Zones. Their language was something I couldn't really get a grip on and I knew it would take a while before I really caught on to the killjoy lingo.<p>

When we finally got to base they didn't remove my blindfold until I was fully inside. Their space was small and very close together. The place was cluttered with so much life and color I just stood there as they made themselves comfortable in the space around me. Each one of them had their own unique look and I found myself staring as they stripped their leather jackets and sprawled out on various chairs, couches and the floor.

"You don't have to stand in the door," the short one said from his spot on a battered love seat in the corner of the living room. I stared at him to memorize his features. He had a kind smile and a young face. He looked about sixteen but his eyes said otherwise. The hazel depths showed age and experience and his shaggy dark hair fell in clumps around his face. He was dressed in a loose black shirt, a green vest resting on the arm of his chair as he pulled a leg up to remove one of his boots.

"Yeah, we've got plenty of places to crash," the tallest one of the group smiled at me from their small kitchen area. His jacket was black and emblazoned with the same black spider and American flag on their car. His face was covered in stubble and his eyes betrayed the crinkle of age. A curly streak of gray in his hair gave him away as the oldest of the group.

"Here, sit. Let me introduce you to the gang," The one called Poison came up behind me and placed his hands on my shoulders. I tensed but he didn't seem to notice because he pushed me into the room and sat me down on the couch beside a blond man with a yellow tiger printed shirt and fingerless gloves. Poison sat in front of me on the cluttered coffee table and smoothed his hands through his bright red hair. A few streaks of color lined his defined jaw from sweat and the hint of dark drown stubble matched the closely cut sides of his hair. He'd obviously kept his hair in a Mohawk like style before it got too long. The blue Dead Pegasus jacket he'd unzipped revealed a simple black t-shirt but the yellow ray gun still strapped to his hip wasn't lost on me.

"I'm Party Poison," he smiled and pointed to himself. "That's Korba Kid," he motioned to the blond beside me who flashed a quick closed lipped smile before picking up a Murder magazine beside Poison's thigh and flipped through the pages.

Poison pointed over my shoulder at the curly haired man who'd sat down by the door and was strumming a guitar. "That's Jet Star."

He waved and smiled before returning to his strumming and I glanced back to Party Poison. He pointed over his shoulder with a smirk and said, "And that's Fun Ghoul, the one who got a little flashlight happy in the desert."

"Nice to know that, thanks."

"You got an alias? Or a real name?" Fun Ghoul asked, kicking off his second boot and pulling a radio transmitter into his lap.

"Yes."

"And?"

The four men looked up at me and I blushed. Not even in the City did I get much attention from men other than my brother. He'd refused to have me married so they delegated me as unfit for child bearing and stuck me with the mechanics. But I knew I was fertile enough to raise a family. My body still functioned like the average female but his word was law as the sole man of our household so I remained celibate and untouched.

My cheeks flushed under their expectant stares and I folded my hands in my lap and stared at them. "I don't think giving you my name is a safe thing to do."

"Smart girl," Fun Ghoul muttered and I glanced up to meet his eyes.

"Then what should we call you?" Jet Star asked and they all took a moment to wonder.

Telling them my real name was just as dangerous as me learning theirs so I figured it was a fair trade. Taking the moment of silence I delved into my own mind trying to remember anything that would help them put a name to my face. When nothing came Poison pulled my gun from the seat of his pants and held it up in the light.

"Well, this means you're a Reaper." He pointed to the scythe symbol on the handle.

"That can't be right though. There hasn't been a Reaper since the start of the war." Fun Ghoul piped up but Jet Star cut him off.

"She said she didn't steal it, though."

They all rounded on me once again and I bit my lip. Never had I felt so scrutinized.

"Where did you say you got this?" Poison demanded.

"My brother. He gave it to me before the Dracs got us. After we crashed. It's my gun. I know that much."

He watched me for a second before nodding and spinning the gun a few times around his finger. "Did he tell you anything about it? Where he'd gotten it? How he'd gotten it?"

I shook my head. "All I know is that my brother had it and gave it to me. That's my gun I just feel it. Although, he did call me something before he died."

"And that was?" Ghoul asked.

"Rev?"

"Short for…?"

"I'm sorry, but I don't know."

"There's gotta be more than that." Fun Ghoul shook his head.

I didn't want to disappoint them but my still partially medicated brain wasn't giving me anything. I felt the tears prickle my eyes and bowed my head to keep them from seeing my weakness. All I could think about was my dying brother. Seeing the life leave his body and the monumental rage I felt just knowing I couldn't have prevented it. I needed to know who I was and why we had been forced out of the city in the first place.

"You guys seem to know about Reapers. What are they?"

"More like who are they," Jet Star muttered from behind me. He moved across the room and took a seat on the floor between Fun Ghoul's chair and the couch. He rested his hands behind his head and looked at me.

"Reapers were the most dangerous Killjoys out there at the start of the war. They were a famous family who got wiped out after Korse began his reign of terror. The first of the Reapers was a guy named Ted Swanson. He and his brothers took out more Dracs and Scarecrows than any of us. They perfected weapons and fought until Korse captured one of them out of pure luck and corrected his family. Their reign ended, we took over and we haven't seen a Reaper since."

My heart froze just listening to him explain the origins of this Reaper clan and I bit my lip. Poison noticed before the rest f them and leaned forward. He placed a hand on my knee and squeezed.

"You know something."

The butterflies in my stomach were enough to tell me to deflect until I could gather my thoughts. So I shook my head and kept my eyes on anything but the four men staring at me. Poison and Fun Ghoul shared a silent glance before the smaller man stood and shoved his hands in his pockets.

"Well, until you can remember I guess we'll just call you Rev."

"Okay."

"Now, some medical questions," he muttered and marched over to me and took my face in his hands. "Have you withdrawn yet?"

"Uh, I don't think so?" I stuttered, trying to prevent him from feeling the hot blush on my cheeks from his sudden contact. It wasn't every helpful that all four of them were extremely attractive to my virgin eyes and even the slightest sideward glance from them sent a rush of butterflies through me. I had to fight to push the fluttery teenaged hopeless romantic out of my head and focus on survival and remembrance as Fun Ghoul stared into my eyes, his thumbs lifting my eyelids.

"No, you're still slightly medicated. No worries. You'll be clean in a few days. The rest of the meds need to wash from your system. It's gonna suck, but once you're free you'll remember more and BL/ind's hold on you will be completely gone."

"That sounds refreshing," I mumbled and Ghoul finally let me go. He stared at me and chewed the inside of his lip before turning to Poison and Kobra Kid.

"Once she's free she'll need a new wardrobe. You think you guys can scrounge some clothes from somewhere?"

Both men nodded and Ghoul kept talking. "And she'll need somewhere to sleep."

The room went quiet and I felt the heat rush to my cheeks again. It didn't look like there was much space for them let alone a stranger and a woman at that. They all glanced around at each other before their eyes settled back on me. I caught Poison's eyes first and he smiled crookedly and sighed.

"She can use my bed until we figure out what to do."

"Then it's settled." Ghoul stood and picked up his boots. "If she starts withdrawal let me know and we'll move her to my room until she's clean."

"You got it." Poison saluted him as he moved toward a door behind the kitchen.

"Each man gradually gathered whatever clothing they'd shed upon arriving and moved toward respective bedrooms. Jet Star disappeared into a tiny room decorated with old record covers all over the walls a few guitars hanging above a beat up dresser. Kobra's room was littered with tons of reading material from magazines to old bound books and his walls were decorated with knick-knacks of all types. Posters and pictures and magazine cut outs. I'd only got a quick glance before he slammed the door behind him and then it was just Party Poison and me.

He stripped off his jacket fully and stood up, moving toward the last door off the living room. The door was decorated with pages from sketchbooks depicting all sorts of interesting hand-drawn characters. The symbol on the back of his jacket poked out from beneath the sheets of paper. It looked to have been spray-painted onto the wood.

"It's not much, but it's home," he shrugged and pushed the door open to reveal a queen sized bed with rumpled sheets and a small closet. Every inch of the walls were covered with more drawings and magazine clippings like Kobra's accept his walls were more artful. I'd never seen so much color in one place and my eyes couldn't seem to focus on just one thing. I turned around to look back out into the living room to give my eyes a rest when I noticed the four posters hanging beside the door.

Each one had the blazing red X beneath the black "EXTERMINATE" bar over their eyes and I knew who they were. They were the Fabulous Killjoys. The men that Korse wanted dead most. The band of miscreants who destroyed a large portion of the City out of spite and even more of the Zones to keep the Dracs from venturing too far into the desert. These men were the most dangerous men in the Zones and felt safer than ever in their little base.

"Rev? You okay?" Poison asked from behind me and I turned to smile at him.

"Perfect. Thank you."

He nodded and motioned to his bed, "It's messy but I wasn't expecting a guest. You sleep here and I'll take the couch in the living room until we can figure this out."

"You don't have to. I'll sleep on the couch. I don't want to impose…"

He shook his head, "No, that's not right. You sleep in here. If you start feeling weird or anything, just yell. Ghoul has a bit of medical knowledge under his belt so he's the one who'll take care of you when you withdrawal."

I nodded, "Thank you again, Party Poison. If you hadn't found me I'd probably be dead."

He smiled crookedly again and gathered a pillow and a stack of blankets from his closet. As he slipped past me to move into the living room our arms gently brush sending a rush of nervous energy through me. Our eyes met for a split second, his irises a pretty mix of brown and green. He didn't stop moving, though, and stepped into the living room.

"You should sleep, you look tired," he muttered, looking down at his dirty socks. His hair fell in his face with an air of innocence and I bit my lip.

"Yeah, I am."

He nodded and I shuffled awkwardly into the bedroom. "Well, goodnight."

"'Night."

That night curled up in Party Poison's bed was the first night in a long time that I slept peacefully. I felt safe and my mind at ease. I knew I was in the right place.


	4. Three

**Three**

The next morning Fun Ghoul woke me up and shoved me into the shower. He insisted I had to be clean so he could look at the cuts and scrapes all over me to see if I needed stitches. He tossed a towel at me and closed the door leaving me alone in the insanely decorated bathroom. The walls were covered in graffiti. The mirror was the only thing that didn't have some kind of artwork on it. Pulling it open I found it fully stocked with all kinds of hair dye, different types of painkillers and razor blades. Taking a razor for myself I turned the water on and stepped in.

The hot water felt wonderful against my skin. I'd never taken the time to really enjoy myself in the shower. Usually it was timed and I could never just relax. So I stood in the spray and let the droplets pelt me. I let my muscles relax and enjoyed the feel of the heat. It felt like all the scum of the City was rinsing me free. All the medications and torturous work hours washing away and in return I could feel again. It was just me in my head. The hazed buzzing was just a small noise instead of a giant cloud over my judgment. The decisions I made were my own.

I smiled and finished my shower, wrapping the towel around me tightly and cracking the door open. All four Killjoys were lounging in the living room. Kobra looked up and pushed his sunglasses down his nose, his eyebrows high.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Um… clothes?"

He snapped his fingers and Jet Star pointed to a table beside the door where a stack of clothes was folded. I inched as far out of the bathroom as I could without flashing anyone and grabbed them before slipping back into the bathroom. There was a pair of briefs that were only a little too baggy and a pair of black jeans. They didn't provide a bra so I used the one I had on and pulled on a white tee shirt with the black spider on it. To put over it they provided a blue vest similar to Fun Ghoul's and a pair of worn socks. I already had a BLI issued belt so I wove it around my hips and looked into the mirror. My hair dripped down my back so I dug around the cabinet beneath the sink and found a comb before pulling the dark wavy mass into a damp ponytail at the back of my head.

"Much better," Kobra Kid nodded when I stepped out of the bathroom. "Your boots are by the door." He pointed across the room to a pair of free-swinging doors and my black BLI issued boots were resting on the floor. They'd taken the time to scratch off the BLI logo and replaced it with the scythe symbol on my ray gun.

"Thanks," was all I managed to say before Fun Ghoul popped up off the couch and shoved me down into an armchair. He pulled a bag full of medical supplies toward us and sat on the coffee table.

"The scrapes on your face are just that, nothing serious," he grabbed my face and turned my head from side to side. Then he took each arm and glanced it over. "This needs a few butterflies but that's it." He taped up a long gash down my left arm that had slowly begun scabbing in a jagged line. "Does it hurt anywhere else?"

After the relaxing shower nothing really hurt too bad. My cuts still stung and my head pounded but everything else was just a steady ache. I put pressure on each leg and rotated my ankles to make sure everything was in place.

"Just my right ankle. I think I sprained it," I lifted my foot to show him and he nodded, pulling out a role of ace bandage and pulling my sock off. His hands were gentle and precise as he wrapped my foot in athletic tape and the bandage and the butterflies in my stomach started up when his fingertips brushed my skin.

"There, don't walk on it too much for a couple days. You should be fine though." He smiled up at me.

"Thanks."

"No problem."

Fun Ghoul gathered his supplies and disappeared into his room and the other men went back to whatever they'd been doing so I hobbled over to my boots and put them on. Since everyone else was occupied I glanced around the cluttered living room. Party Poison looked up from the gun he was cleaning and shoved his hair away from his eyes.

"What are you looking for?"

"My pack."

He nodded and stood beckoning me to his bedroom. I dutifully followed him and he pulled my pack out of his closet. He placed it on the bed and I sat down beside it and unzipped the top. I could feel his eyes on me as I pulled the top open and yanked out my sleeping bag.

"Do you mind if I stick around?" he asked.

"No, not at all."

I heard him sit but I was too busy digging through the contents of the pack. There were medical supplies and a few spare pairs of underwear. I tossed aside the undergarments and dove back in. At first I just pulled out more supplies, some Power Pup and a few cans of beans before my fingers brushed against something leather. A zipper caught under my fingernail so I grabbed it and yanked it out. It was a jacket, a brand new, unworn jacket. Party Poison leaned across the bed when I held it up and took hold of each sleeve. It was a dark turquoise, the scythe symbol on the shoulder of each sleeve. The collar was black fabric as well as the tip of each sleeve and the hem at the bottom. The spider that the Killjoys had everywhere was white against the leather and rested on the left breast. On each side there was a pocket with silver snaps and on the back was a giant grim reaper, scythe and all, outlined in white. Around the reaper was a name, my name, in fancy script.

"Well I guess we know what Rev stands for now," Poison muttered as I stared at it.

"I guess." I whispered, running my fingers over the careful work of the reaper.

Party Poison shrugged and pulled the pack closer to him. He peered into it before dumping it upside down. A few pairs of shorts and feminine products fell from an inside pocket and Poison lifted the box of BLI issued tampons to study them.

"They still make this stuff?" he turned the box in his hands.

I knew my face had turned bright red because he laughed when I snatched the box back and stuffed it in the pack. He shuffled through the pile of stuff on the bed and I returned my attention back to my jacket. The inside was a smooth silky fabric with concealed pockets, a ray gun holster tucked neatly in one of the sleeves. I unzipped each pocket and stuck my finger in only to find a Vend-a-Hack. I tossed that at Poison but he was more interested in a folded stack of papers.

"Rev, I think this is for you," he whispered and looked up at me.

Unable to hide my curiosity I grabbed it from him. It was a letter in my brother's handwriting.

"I'll leave you alone," Poison muttered and stood up. "If you need me I'll be in the other room."

Unable to help the tears welling in my eyes I just nodded and waited for him to close the door. Once he was gone I unfolded the letter and smoothed it out. The ink was fresh and his handwriting was messy but I knew it was Daniel's writing. He had the sloppiest hand in the entire family but this letter was deliberately written so I could read it. He'd taken a lot of time to write it out.

_Korra,_

_If you're reading this then I'm no longer alive. You're probably wondering why all these horrible things have happened in such a short amount of time. I wish I could have told you before my death, but it was too risky. So I write this letter to you, hoping you remember who you are and why you are where you are._

_I know you've been remembering bits and pieces of our life before the war. We were happy then and you were such a great girl. You loved life and you had a great personality and Better Living Industries took that away. Over the past few months, I have been weaning you off your medications by replacing half of your dosage with placebo. Please understand, I didn't do this to hurt you. You will be sick for a few weeks once your dosage completely stops but it's so worth it, Korra. The freedom you feel when your mind is liberated is more than exhilarating. I'm sure you're already beginning to feel these freeing affects already. Embrace them. Follow your instincts and live like you've never lived before._

_Although I can't explain everything in this letter, eventually you'll understand why this had to happen. My death had to happen. It's now up to you to avenge our family. The Reapers. You need to do everything you can and free as many people from this feelingless buzz as you can._

_You probably wonder who or what the Reaper is. It's our blood, our legacy, and us. Our family used to be dangerous and powerful against the BLI but a careless mistake caused the entire movement to crumble. They encouraged Killjoy activity and various groups have tried to make an impact like our family had. There are a select few who would embrace you after you're free of your medications and I implore you to find them. You've seen their posters through the city and heard the stories of their destruction. They are known as the Fabulous Killjoys and they are the ones who will help you. At first, they may not trust you but I promise you, once you remember who you are, they'll accept you and help you._

_I just beg you, Korra. Remember who you used to be and remember me. Avenge me. Avenge your family._

_I love you baby sister._

_Daniel_

The papers included with the letter were printouts of each Fabulous Killjoy's extermination poster. Party Poison's was on top with a note Daniel had scrawled in the corner of the crinkled paper. It read: _This is Party Poison, he knew our father before the war. These men will help you remember yourself. Trust them and they will come to trust you._ When I couldn't find more notes on the other Extermination flyers I folded up the letter and tucked it in the pocket of my pants. I shoved the contents of the pack back into it and just sat there.

No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't remember more than what I already knew. The medications where taking forever to leave my system and the block they had on my memories was slow to break. I knew I had to avenge my brother, that was a given. Korse had him killed and I wasn't going to let him get away with it. All I had now was a name and a hope that these Fabulous Killjoys would trust me enough to let me help them fight the good fight. But gaining trust took forever and I had no idea how much time I actually had.

After a while Poison's door creaked open and he stuck his head in. His brilliant red hair was messy and windswept and he had goggles pushed up, tangling it around the straps. His face was shiny with sweat and his skin darkened from being in the sun, but he looked happy. His hazel eyes were warm, greener than I'd seen them the night before and his chapped lips pulled up into a smile.

"You're still in here?" he said and stepped fully into the room. His jacket was unzipped but he was still armed and covered in dirt. He yanked off his gloves and tossed them onto the dresser across the room before sitting on the edge of the bed. "You've been crying."

I touched my face and pulled my hand back to find my fingers damp. "I guess I have."

He nodded and I stared at my lap. "How are you feeling? Any symptoms yet?"

"No, but it'll start soon. It's almost time for my second dosage and I can feel my body changing because I haven't taken either. It's strange."

He nodded again, "You should sleep in Ghoul's room tonight, then. Just so he'll be there when it starts."

"I'd rather sleep up here."

The comment slipped out before I could stop it and I pressed my hands over my mouth. Poison just laughed at me.

"I meant, I feel safer up here. I think."

"You don't have to explain yourself."

We sat in a moment of silence and I remembered Daniel's note on his flyer. Taking a chance, I pulled the little bundle of papers out and unfolded them. "Poison. I don't know if you trust me yet, or if I even trust you but my brother write this on your flyer."

He eyed it warily before taking it from me and reading the short note. The butterflies in my stomach multiplied as he stared at the black and white version of his face. The anticipation as he eyed it almost made me insane but I bit my tongue and patiently waited.

"Who are you?" he finally spoke up and looked straight into my eyes.

When I didn't respond he handed the flyer back to me and leaned closer across the bed. He placed a hand on each side of my face and stared at me. The pressure from his palms made the bruises on my cheeks and nose ache but he didn't let me go, he just kept staring into my eyes.

"The problem is, I don't really know myself," I whispered and he sighed.

"I know. But I can't help you if you don't tell me who you are. What's your name?"

I shook my head. "No, I can't tell you that. It's not safe."

"I understand you're afraid, but if your brother trusts us and tells you to trust us, then I think that means we should trust each other."

I shook my head again. "I don't even know you."

He finally let my face go and sat back with a crooked smirk, "Then get to know me. Get to know us."

"I'll try."


	5. Four

**Four**

That night I woke up in a cold sweat. At first I thought it had something to do with a nightmare but then the shivering started. My body felt off and I couldn't control my movements so I mustered what was left of my strength and dragged myself into the living room where Poison was knocked out on the couch. He was sprawled with half his body hanging over the side, his wild red hair all over the place and his mouth slightly opened as he breathed. With a shaking hand I nudged his shoulder and he sat up quickly, eyes bleary but alert.

"What?" he demanded, his voice cracking.

I opened my mouth to reply but I couldn't bring myself to speak. Poison watched me for a second before comprehending what was going on. He jumped up and scooped me up into his arms. He tripped a few times as he carried me toward Fun Ghoul's room and slammed his fist against the door.

"Ghoul! Get the fuck up!" he hammered on it until the younger man appeared, his dark hair a mess as well and a pencil behind his ear.

"What."

"It's starting."

"About damn time," Ghoul muttered and Poison carried me into the dark room.

"Put her on my bed, I have an extra cot," he instructed and Poison did as he was told, dumping me on top of the rumpled covers of Fun Ghoul's bed. I let my eyes drift closed as my body continued to shiver. I felt someone's hand on my forehead but I didn't strain myself to see whom it was or listen to the conversation. I didn't have the strength to open my eyes to see who was speaking. I know they had a whispered conversation and then one of them left.

The hours dragged by in a blur of shivering, vomiting and sweating. I couldn't move. My arms and legs were so weak I had to be carried around if I wanted to use the bathroom. Poison refused to let me eat solid foods and Ghoul constantly forced water and canned soup down my throat. I lost track of how long I stayed holed up in Ghoul's room before I began to regain my strength. If I wasn't being sick, I was curled up in the fetal position crying as memories bombarded my ailing mind.

I remembered my brother, my mother and father. Although most of the memories of the war were fuzzy or I didn't remember at all I still pined for my brother and spent my time grieving the man I'd lost and never really known.

* * *

><p>When I could walk around on my own again Fun Ghoul decided it was time to kick me out of his room.<p>

"Can you pee by yourself yet?" he'd grumbled as I paged through a magazine I found under his bed.

"Yes."

"Then go back to Poison's room. I want my bed back." He glared at me and tossed his ray gun on the cluttered desk in the corner. His room was an explosion of all things weaponry. Wires and different gadgets cluttered his desk and the walls were home to books, posters of various bands and stolen street signs.

"Fine, but if anything happens to me it's on you."

He stuck his tongue out at me as I climbed off his bed and headed toward the stairs.

"I'm taking your magazine too, jerk!" I called over my shoulder and he responded with a flip of his middle finger.

"It's an old issue. I'll survive."

"Ignore him, he just hates sleeping on that nasty ass cot. He's been unbearable since you got sick." Kobra mumbled when I entered the living room. He had his sunglasses on and a bass guitar on his lap. It looked old and beat up and one of the strings had snapped but he continued to pluck the strings absently.

"I didn't know you could play an instrument."

"We all can." He shrugged.

"Oh." I moved across the room and sat in the armchair by the bathroom. Kobra watched me so I flashed a smile and folded my hands in my lap. "So, I think I remember a little more about… well about me."

He cocked his head to the side and nodded. "Must be nice to have all those meds out of your system."

I nodded. "Yeah. There's so much in me that I've never even known about my family and myself. I mean, even my personality is new. It's strange."

He plucked out a few notes on his bass and didn't look at me. "My name is short for Revenge. I'm sure Poison told you that already." I piped up and he nodded.

"My father was apart of the Reaper gang at the beginning of the war. Scarecrow caught him. I don't remember how. But I remember feeling terrified and trapped…."

Kobra stopped playing to look at me and I let my memories take over. Every feeling I'd had as a little girl watching my father be beaten and tortured trying to protect my mother. The storm outside lighting up the house as Korse himself dragged him onto our front lawn and exterminated him as an example.

Tears pricked my eyes and I looked at Kobra. He was staring at me with his mouth slightly open. He'd pushed his sunglasses up on the top of his head and I finally got to see his eyes. They were a warm light brown with flecks of blue and green. He blinked a few times when I stopped talking and he pushed the glasses back over his face.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that," he muttered.

"Yeah."

"And on top of that losing your brother. I can't imagine the world without my brother."

"You have a brother?" He nodded.

"Poison. You couldn't tell he's my blood?"

And then I took the time to actually look at him. I could see the subtle similarities. The way they both kind of spoke out of the corner of their mouths, Poison more so than Kobra, their facial structure, although Poison's was smoother than Kobra's it was no surprise that they shared blood. Just looking at Kobra I couldn't help but think about Daniel. He didn't share a single feature similar to Kobra or Poison but just remembering the sibling bond we'd shared, however weakened by the meds, made my heart ache.

"Hey, you okay?" he waved a hand in my face and I forced a smile.

"Yeah."

"Poison and Jet Star should be back soon. He'll be happy to know you're up and moving again."

I nodded and he watched me for a second. I wanted to know where they went when they weren't here. They always came back filthy and sweaty and sometimes so energized they couldn't sit still. Sometimes they brought back supplies and sometimes they came back with a little less ammo than they left with. But whenever they came back they always came to check on me and make sure I was okay.

"You can ask, you know," Kobra nudged me with a crooked smile.

"Huh?"

"You can ask us questions. We're not gonna bite. I know you're curious."

"Oh." It took me a second to process and then my curiosity kicked in and I resettled myself beside him on the couch. I crossed my legs and leaned forward toward him. "So, where do you guys go when you leave?"

Kobra chuckled and shrugged. "Everywhere. Sometimes we search abandoned places for supplies or we check out Drac activity in the Zones. Just depends on the info we get and the day."

"So you do go out and do the stuff the papers say."

"Yeah, BL/ind just exaggerates. We're not evil, like they make us out to be. We just want to live free and fast and have fun. Not be programmed to what Better Living wants us to be."

He plucked a few more notes on his bass and Fun Ghoul poked his head around his bedroom door. We both looked up and he motioned toward the door.

"They're back."

Kobra nodded and Ghoul disappeared back into his room. Before we could react Jet Star burst into the room with Poison draped over his shoulder. We both jumped up to let Jet lay him on the couch and Kobra tossed his bass aside.

"What happened?" I demanded as Poison groaned, his hair covering his face. My nurse's instincts kicked in so I went into checking him over automatically. Jet stepped back and leaned on the back of the couch as I pushed the mane of red from Poison's face to be greeted with half his face covered in blood. "Jet!"

"We were just scouting for Dracs. Dr. D told us there was some activity in Zone Four so we went to check it out. We got jumped and Poison was grazed by one of those retro pistols. Here." He held out the bullet casing that was smashed like it'd been lodged in a wall.

"My Dad used to carry one of these," I mumbled and tossed the shell onto the coffee table. "Get Ghoul, I need his kit."

"Frank!" Jet shouted and Ghoul reappeared from his room.

"Yo!"

"We need your kit."

"On it!" he disappeared and then rushed into the room and tossed me the duffle bag full of supplies. I got to work, taking a wipe to his forehead to clear the area. Poison groaned again, and squinted up at me. He had a gash through his eyebrow that was oozing into his eye and his usually pearly white teeth were tinted red.

"Do any of your teeth feel loose?" I asked and pried his mouth open.

He giggled and shook his head so I checked for any major damage to his jaw before returning my attention to his eye. I gathered the supplies I needed and set to work first dabbing some peroxide onto a cotton ball and dabbing it on the gash.

"Fucking hell!" Poison hissed and the other guys laughed. I ignored them and kept going, sterilizing the needle and thread to sew up his face. He winced when I poked him and let out a few more choice words before I tied it up and cut the string.

"There, all done." I sat back and he sat up.

"Fuck, I can feel it swelling already," he grumbled, letting his hair fall over his face. "Thanks though."

"Here, use this," Jet moved to the kitchen and dug around in the freezer. He tossed a bag of ice at me and I pressed it to Poison's face. He moaned with relief and thanked me again.

That night I made dinner for the boys out of some food I found around their makeshift kitchen. Poison forced me to eat more soup claiming he didn't want me to get sick from switching to solid food too quick so I sat glaring at him in the corner sipping tomato soup from a chipped mug with the BLI's mascot Mouse Cat on the side. After dinner the boys dispersed to their rooms so I took the time to clean up after them. Ghoul and Poison lingered in the kitchen playing cards while I scrubbed down the counter and appliances. By the time I was finished it was nearing midnight.

"Well, I'm going to bed. Don't make a mess while I'm sleeping," I yawned and stretched and Ghoul waved his hand at me. Poison looked up from his cards.

"I'm gonna hit the hay too. Ghoul, we'll pick this up later."

"Fuck, man. Come on!" Ghoul whined but Poison ignored him.

He followed me into his bedroom and closed the door gently behind us. At first I thought nothing of it and went about my business, digging around in his closet for the sweatpants and old shirt he'd lent me for pajamas and he went about kicking his boots off behind me. I heard them thump to the floor and froze when he climbed into his bed.

"You're not sleeping on the couch." I turned to him and he stretched out under the covers. He'd taken his shirt and pants off, the clothes a rumpled pile on the floor beside his boots. My cheeks burned and he rested his hands behind his head.

"It's fucking freezing on the couch and I like my bed. I didn't think it'd be an issue."

"Oh, um… no I was just observing… I guess." My fingers began to tremble as I pulled my shirt over my head and quickly replaced it with the sleep shirt. Thankfully it fell to mid thigh so I slipped my pants off and pulled the sweatpants on quickly. When I turned back to the bed Poison was sprawled out, his eyes closed. Carefully I lifted the blankets on my side and slid in, curling up as far away from him as possible without falling off the side.

"I'm not gonna bite you," Poison muttered, making me jump and he curled up beside me. His body heat warmed me instantly but my muscles froze. He laughed and tugged the blankets up over my shoulders and I felt him drape his arm around me. His breath was hot on the back of my neck through my hair and he chuckled softly, his voice low.

"Relax, Rev, it's warmer like this I'm not trying to do anything shady."

"Try wearing clothes then," I grumbled and he laughed.

"I am wearing clothes," he rubbed his leg against mine. "See?"

"Ass." I grumbled.

He kept laughing until the room got quiet and he fell back to sleep, his arm still resting loosely at my waist and his head tucked close at the base of my neck. I fell asleep to the sound of his slow breathing, the steady breeze of his breath on the back of my neck warming my skin until I passed out.

* * *

><p>Eh. Sorry it took so long... if anyone's reading this still. Thanks for sticking around and Happy Thanksgiving :)<p> 


	6. Five

**Five**

"So how'd you two sleep last night?" Fun Ghoul asked with a cheeky smile when I shuffled out into the kitchen in the morning.

"Fine," I mumbled, ignoring the pointed glare Poison shot him. My focus was on food and my stomach let out a low growl while I tried to find some semblance of sustenance. Throwing open a cabinet I found a rusted coffee can behind some old sponges and ripped the top open.

The smell of coffee wafted out and I took a deep breath in. The beans were a little old but I didn't care. I set to finding something to grind them as Jet Star joined us in the kitchen, yawning and stretching.

"She found coffee," Jet Star noted as I ground up the beans. "I think she's a keeper."

"Very funny." I threw a bean at him and resumed opening and closing cabinets for mugs. "Do you guys keep mugs in one spot? My goodness."

"We're not big on putting shit away," Fun Ghoul said, turning the page in his issue of Battery City Times, "Looks like there was a bust on a hideout in Zone Three. Five Killjoys ghosted for mugging a citizen. That's bullshit."

"Guess we know where we're going today then." Kobra entered the room rubbing his eyes.

"Morning!" I chirped and he smiled at me.

"You found coffee?" he perked up and I poured him the first mug.

"That I did."

"I love you," he took the mug from me and sank into an open seat just breathing in the steam.

The four of them laughed and Jet leaned on the counter beside me to take his mug. "It's rare to find coffee around here. We're all seriously addicted to the stuff. We thought we'd been out of it for almost a month and you find a can. You're pretty much our hero."

"I'm flattered."

"You should be," Poison muttered.

I felt my cheeks flush again and Ghoul piped up from his seat. "So Poison, you slept in your own bed last night. Did you get any action?" He wiggled his eyebrows and I took my turn to burry my face in my coffee mug.

"Shut the fuck up, Ghoul. She's not some sexborg or some shit."

"Inquiring minds would like to know though," Ghoul persisted. "Rev?"

"No." I grumbled. "And for future inquiries, my sex life, or lack there of, is none of your business."

Ghoul chuckled and shook his head at me. "Not here."

"Anyway," Poison interjected and I buried my face back in my mug, the steam from the hot coffee blurring my vision. "While you guys go check out that raid, I was going to hang back with Rev… you know… see what we can dig up."

The guys nodded and Jet and Ghoul shared a look. Instead of saying anything I pretended not to notice and finished off my coffee. As the guys geared up to go out into the desert I concentrated on cleaning up their disaster of a kitchen. Not only was there zero organization but also everything was filthy and old. By the time the guys left I was elbows deep in soapy water and only making a small dent in the dirty dishes lining the entire kitchen counter. But I didn't mind, it kept my hands busy so I didn't have to think about anything else. Until I remembered Poison had stuck around.

He'd disappeared with the other three and finally decided to grace me with his presence after a few minutes outside. His hair was windswept and he leaned against the wall beside the fridge, his hip cocked and his arms crossed over his chest. My instinctual reaction was to keep my eyes on my task at hand and remain silent, so that's exactly what I did.

"It must be killing you," he mumbled after a while to which I paused and stared at him. He pushed away from the wall and grabbed a towel, picking up one of the wet dishes and drying it.

"Pardon?"

He shrugged, "To live with strangers, alone without your brother. The lonliness must be killing you." He shrugged.

"Oh," I kept my eyes on the dishes, scrubbing a mug with a bit more fervor than needed. I could feel the emotions stirring in my gut and my eyes prickled with threatening tears but I did my best to keep my mouth shut and my focus on the dishes. This wasn't a time to be weak.

Poison dried a few more dishes before tossing the towel on the counter and leaning his back against it. He crossed his arms over his chest. I bit my lip and kept scrubbing. My hands shook and I could barely think. Swirling through the emotional knot in my guts I couldn't help but be distracted. All I could focus on was how he smelled. Like laundry detergent and sweat and it threw off my senses now that he was so close.

"So?" he asked and I placed the clean dish on the counter.

"Um. Yeah, I mean, it's kind of lonely but I'm dealing with it."

He nodded and the rag I was using slipped into the sink. "Why won't you tell me who you are?" he finally asked and I gave up trying to dig the rag out of the suds.

I shrugged.

He sighed and slouched over to the table where Ghoul left the newspaper and flipped through a few pages. I focused back on my dish washing and we were silent for a while. Poison read quietly while I finished the dishes until I couldn't take the silence any longer. I dropped the towel on the counter and turned to him but he ignored me.

"Poison I—" I started, sitting down at the table across from him. He looked up at me, his hair hanging in his face like it always did. "I'm just confused and scared."

"Who are you?" he asked slowly, pushing the paper toward me. The black and white photo under the headline he'd been reading made my eyes water. Daniel smiled up at me, his arm draped around my shoulders. It was an old family photo our mother had kept framed in our house. It was one of the only pictures we had of before the war and our mother cherished it as one of her most prized belongings. Above the picture the headline read in big bold lettering 'Battery City Traitors- Former Draculoid found dead, Sister missing'. I skimmed the article that explained the wreckage I'd left of our car on Route Guano. It described my appearance and my real name along with a few speculations that might have lead to the catastrophe of the night we left the city.

"So your name is Korra?" Poison asked and I folded the paper closed.

"Yes."

"You're Bobby Swanson's daughter. You're Reaper blood." He said.

"Yes."

He stared at me. "The last Reaper, huh? That makes you very valuable and very, very dangerous."

I shrugged. "I don't know about that…"

"You know the inner workings of the city and you're good with your hands. That makes you extremely dangerous."

"Oh."

He stared at me for a moment but I couldn't look at him. Now that he knew my name I had little else to hide, especially if he'd known my family before the wars. He could know everything if he tried. I shivered just thinking about it.

"I knew your brother," Poison looked up at me and I froze. I think he wanted more of a reaction from me but I just stared at him, silently trying not to cry in front of him. I needed to be tough.

"Not personally or anything but…I worked down the street from your uncle's garage. Swanson Repair, where Daniel worked. He used to stop in and pick up comics and stuff for you every few days. He always said you were a fan of Batman."

My lips twitched as I battled my own emotions and memories. Batman. I remembered him. I had a fascination with the darkness of Batman and how he didn't need superpowers to be special. Daniel thought I was a loser for it but he always brought home a different comic for me to read. And I'd loved the villains. The Joker and Harley Quinn were my favorites.

"Daniel thought Poison Ivy was hot," I finally choked out and Poison chuckled.

"Not surprising."

"The note said you knew my father." I watched him and he rubbed the spot above the stitches in his eyebrow. The lump had gone down considerably but it was still black and blue. He winced, remembering the cut and frowned.

"I don't remember. Not really," he shrugged. "I think I worked for him before the war... only for a short time, though. He hired me in the shop but I'm shit when it comes to mechanics and cars so I wasn't there long and then your uncle hired Daniel. He was going to keep me around for clerical shit but I got the job at the bookstore with my brother…."

He ran his fingers through the tangles of red hair in his face and looked away. I could tell he was lost in his own memory. The urge to ask what he was seeing consumed me but I didn't want to be rude so instead I stood to get back to drying the dishes. The towel had fallen into the sink so I fished it out and grabbed a chipped bowl. My movements must have pulled Poison back to reality because he coughed and rustled the newspaper.

"Sorry." Was all he said before getting up. I couldn't tell if he'd left or not but I couldn't contain my emotions any longer. They bubbled up, choking me, and I let out a hollow sob. For a second I couldn't breathe from fighting the crying but it won out and the tears streamed down my face again. I tried wiping them away on my arm but they just wouldn't stop so I let them fall as I finished drying the dishes and grabbed a new rag to clean the counters.

* * *

><p>I kept my distance from the guys for a few days, cleaning, washing their clothes and keeping my hands busy to avoid conversation. Whenever one of them tried to ask me something I deflected with a quick shrug and shied away before anything else was said. I knew Poison had filled them in on the newspaper article and what he'd gleaned from my fractured memories but he didn't push me to talk again for another few days.<p>

The nights were even worse. I kept to my side of his bed, curled up on the edge as far away from him as I could. He didn't try to curl up with me like the first time and even left to sleep on the couch a few times. I would pretend to be asleep to avoid talking and he would tiptoe around trying to not wake me. Most nights I just cried but others I had to fight the urge to keep silent. No matter how much I wanted to trust him with information I couldn't risk getting attached, not with what had happened to my brother. The scenarios plagued my nightmares and I would wake up in a cold sweat. It was during one of these nightmares that Poison shook me awake mid-scream.

"Jesus Christ, Rev, wake up!" he was saying when my scream cut off and I returned to consciousness. The image of him and Kobra being tortured by Korse was still fresh in my mind so seeing him so close to my face startled me. On instinct I reached out, placing both hands on his face to make sure he was real.

"Oh thank God." I breathed and let my hands drop. Then I realized what I'd done and my face heated up. "Sorry."

"It's fine," he whispered and sat back, giving me some space. "What's going on? I've let you have your distance but this is getting out of control. I thought you were getting better not worse."

I just shrugged which ticked him off because he sighed and leaned back on his heels. He just glared at me with his eyebrows drawn together and his mouth pouted.

"You have to say something," he insisted. "This can't go on any longer. The nightmares are getting worse and you're turning back into a drone. Your brother wouldn't have wanted this and I know you don't either. I understand if you're scared but I can't stand the silence. We showed our trust in you by letting you stay with us, the least you can do is trust us with some information."

The defeated tone of his voice broke me and I sagged back into the pillows. He was right. They proved their trust the night they took me in, even if I was originally intended as a prisoner. The least I could do was try to trust them. The fear that was driving me insane had to be ignored or nothing would be accomplished. It was on me this time and I knew it.

"I'm sorry. I just… I don't know how to do this," I muttered and he shifted to sit beside me, the covers tangled in my legs from my trashing. He pushed them around so they came free and covered both of us.

"Baby steps, babe," he said and nudged me. "Let's start with this. I'm Gerard, nice to meet you. They call me Party Poison in the Zones. My brother is Mikey or Kobra Kid and we're the only family we've got out here. Now you."

He held his hand out and I took it loosely, shaking it slightly. "I'm Korra. My alias is Revenge Reaper and my brother was Daniel. I was a mechanic in Battery City and then a nurse. That's all I know."

Poison nodded. "There. We're making progress already. Do you feel better?"

"I guess."

Wrapping his arm around me he pulled me into a one-armed hug, resting his chin on top of my head. "Don't disappear on us again, Rev. We need you and you might not realize it yet but you need us too."


End file.
